


for whither thou goest, i will go

by darknesshadows (FeatheredShadow)



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alternate Season/Series 02, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Parabatai Bond, Wings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-21
Updated: 2017-06-21
Packaged: 2018-11-17 02:00:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11265618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FeatheredShadow/pseuds/darknesshadows
Summary: Alec and Jace always made quite the picture when they were flying together, dark brown and golden wings sharp against the blue of the sky.





	for whither thou goest, i will go

**Author's Note:**

> I think it can be enjoyed without having read [the first part](http://archiveofourown.org/works/9425339), but if you want the angsty, hurt/comfort set-up, feel free to read it :)
> 
> [art](http://ofgoldenblood.tumblr.com/post/165804153547/they-had-thought-it-to-be-raziel-itself) by [Vearth](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vearth/pseuds/Vearth) thank you so much darling <3

The low rumble of the fan was the only sound breaking the silence of the room. Despite the closed windows and the curtains that were half shut, Jace could still take a look at the landscape outside – and notice how the trees were standing still. They had seen squirrels the first day they had arrived, watching in childish excitement how the little creatures had run up the trunk before disappearing in the leaves, but the heat was too much even for them now.

Jace had never expected the weather to be so hot in France – especially not in Brittany, where they had been assured, rather sarcastically he was suspecting in insight now, that the weather was similar to England’s. Well as far as he knew, a heat wave in early June was nothing _usual_ in England, and he was pretty sure it was the same for France.

Despite having their room located in the northern part of the huge building, very close to the forest, and with its old stones keeping most of the heat away, Jace didn’t know how he was going to survive the following week if the temperature didn’t abate a little. He could hardly stand the linen pants he was wearing, and knowing going outside required putting a shirt and shoes on top of that, well…

(And he didn’t even want to think of the eventually of having to _gear up_ to go on a _mission_. Not without the lack of wind. The heat at night, he could handle, but no wind? Hell no.)

Jace shifted a little on the bed, feeling the sheets stick to his legs despite the pants he was wearing, and bit back a huff. Alec was still dozing off next to him, drooling slightly on a pillow, and Jace didn’t have it in him to wake him up – not after the weeks he had had, and especially not before what was coming for him.

He spread out his wings a little, enjoying the width of the room that allowed him to stretch his wings to their full extent – old 16th century manors had their advantages, after all, even though A/C wasn’t one of them. His room at the Institute was barely large enough for it, but here, in one of the guestrooms? It was _glorious_. Well, it had required taking the canopy off the bed, but he could spread out his wings as much as he wanted, and no one was complaining about that.

Least of all Alec, who had taken the habit of sleeping under one of his wings, in the early weeks of his return to the Institute. Jace could hardly believe eight months had already gone by – eight months since he had been brought back, beaten and bloody, with the fruits of Valentine’s latest experiments sprouting off his back, and two huge wounds on his left side. He could still see the scars on his cheek and under his ribs, golden lines adorning his skin, but he had gotten used to it after a while. The Silent Brothers had done wonders for his wounds, treating them and giving him as many ointments as possible to make sure skin would regrow over the holes, and it had, after a couple of weeks.

_The golden scars suited him_ , Clary had said as December had come around, while they were looking for a way to hide his wings – make them retract into his back, at least for a little while. He wasn’t comfortable walking around shirtless and had needed to sew anew all his clothes – ripping them off to then put them back on while they were hanging off his wings. That had required taking measures as to where he was supposed to leave some space, to make sure he could at least put on a sweatshirt or something.

It had been a slow, frustrating process, but he had managed, in the end. And Alec had helped him out – had a lot more experience in that kind of slow, meticulous process than he did. Running arrows tended to do that.

Besides, he had spent most of his time with his parabatai since he had come back. He hadn’t felt comfortable with anyone else, at first, and Alec didn’t want to leave him out of his sight. His wings had turned him into something close to an attraction, and he hadn’t liked it in the slightest. Alec had put his foot down – bypassing both Aldertree’s and Lydia’s authority in the same move, without a care in the world – and made sure he would be left in peace until he was back on his feet. Oh, it had only taken a few weeks – three or four at most – until his wounds had healed completely, and he had felt comfortable enough walking around without trying to hide his wings. (And the fact that he had _accidentally_ cut Aldertree’s arm the first time he had went out… well, he hadn’t had yet a total grasp of the span of his wings, even when they were replied, okay?) Alec had been by his side during this time, barely leaving him – unless the battlefield called – and they had grown even closer, their fights over Clary and the Mortal Cup long gone.

It was during these weeks they had started sharing a bed again, and Jace had gotten used really fast at waking up to the sight of Alec snuggled under one of his wings, a peaceful expression on his face. He had never gotten the slightest cut on him, despite moving around when he slept – and Jace suspected his wings knew as well as he did that Alec was to be protected. His parabatai needed someone to cherish and protect him, and Jace was more than up to the task.

Besides, he had yet to meet someone with fingers as talented as Alec’s – the way he groomed his wings was _divine_ , and Jace’s body had reacted in an embarrassing way more than once during the last winter before he had finally put two and two together and grabbed his parabatai before kissing him.

Oh, they had been careful enough to keep this new aspect of their bond under wraps, but Jace was pretty sure a few people were starting to suspect _something_. They had become oddly close, after all, and his time in Valentine’s hands couldn’t bear all responsibility for that. But no one had said anything. The Clave had been too curious to try and find how Jace had ended up with wings – what kind of potions and spells and other experiments had been tried out on him until Valentine had reached his goal. It had made for a painful time with the Silent Brothers, Alec fretting next to him and even having to be restrained on the orders of the Inquisitor, who hadn’t appreciated having to come back to New-York so soon after Izzy’s trial. But they had managed to pierce out the mystery, over the months – all while Clary, with her newfound ability that had developed over the winter too, had managed to create a rune that allowed Jace to have his wings withdrawing into his back, somehow, with no trace of their presence. Oh, it was painful, bones cracking each time and blood pooling on his skin in the first weeks, but it had gotten better over time.

And it made stealth missions easier to go on.

The fan gave a loud whine and Jace looked at it anxiously, hoping the damn thing wasn’t going to die on them. Thankfully, the noise hadn’t awoken Alec, who was still napping on his pillow, but Jace moved his left wing closer to his parabatai, focusing slightly to make sure he could use it as some kind of a homemade fan. _That_ wasn’t going to make Jace break a sweat, and if his parabatai could get some air out of it, well, what the point in not doing it?

Another crack from the fan made itself heard and Jace winced slightly, wondering how long it would be until Alec would wake up. He was half-tempted to get out of his room and go ask for another fan to the mistress of the house – it was super weird to realize that some of the oldest families in the French Nephilim society had also been part of the nobility for _centuries_ – but he didn’t feel like leaving Alec alone.

That his parabatai had been reckless enough to decide to try on the procedure the Clave had written down as good enough to have wings growing out of a Shadowhunter, it was one thing. (And Jace couldn’t hold it against him, not when wings were so useful in battle – as they currently were at a disadvantage against Valentine’s forces – and not when having them gave him such an intense feeling of _freedom_. Being able to roam in the air without a care in the world… no, he couldn’t give it up, and if Alec wanted wings of his own too, he wouldn’t – hadn’t – opposed it.) But watching him having to go through weeks of training, and spells being placed on him by Magnus Bane – who had been rather displeased at the situation – with runes drawn onto his skin by the Silent Brothers and by Clary, who seemed to had quite an affinity for them – well… he hadn’t liked it. At all. Especially not now that they were in the final part, that Alec had had to drink some nasty potions for the past week – one of them reinforcing the fears and insecurities of the poor soul forced to drink it – while there was a final ritual to take part in… No, Jace wouldn’t leave his parabatai to wake up alone.

He remembered too well how awful he had felt, while Valentine had been experimenting on him, forcing vials after vials of potions down his throat, his pet warlock hovering in the shadows, anxiously looking at him.

His wings jerked nervously at the memory, the right one sending a pillow on the floor, and Jace sighed loudly before putting his head against the wall, trying to get some coolness from the stones.

To no avail.

Alec huffed a little before moving his head on the side, looking at him with bleary eyes, sleep still heavy on his eyelids.

“Time?” he mumbled before closing his eyes.

“It’s the middle of the afternoon,” Jace answered in a low voice, not bothering to take a look at his phone.

Looking at the shadows on the trees, he knew they wouldn’t be bothered before a few hours, to come and have some dinner with their hosts. The little group of French Shadowhunters had been more than delighted to have them coming around, especially when they had learned why. To discover there was possibly a way to make Shadowhunters closer to angels… it was too good an opportunity to ignore and they had opened their doors wide enough to the American group, eager to see how it would play out. A few Silent Brothers had accompanied them, as well as Izzy and Lydia, who had left the Institute in the hands of Victor Aldertree – which hadn’t pleased anyone, but Maryse had arrived unannounced a day after their departure, claiming to want to see how the new management was doing, and Jace knew this had taken a weight off Alec’s back.

Still, to think they would have to go deep inside the forest of Broceliande for the final ritual…

“You’re thinking,” Alec mumbled before stretching against the satin sheets, back arching like a cat’s.

Jace looked at him with hungry eyes, wings twitching nervously. There was something in the way Alec was moving, the complete abandon that was permeating his gesture that made heat pool deep inside Jace.

Besides, having Alec lazily stretching on their bed was not a sight he would ever get tired of.

“Tomorrow’s the big day,” Jace finally answered, searching for the bottle of water that was supposed to be on his nightstand – and had ended up on the floor with his discarded pillow, apparently – before retrieving it and handing it to Alec. “It’s going to hurt.”

“You told me that already,” Alec said before gulping down a good third of the bottle. “I _prepared_ for that, remember? And the Silent Brothers will be there, if something goes wrong.”

There was no heat in his voice: it was an old argument they had rehashed plenty of times since Alec had decided to volunteer and get wings of his own, but Jace suspected they would be having it until the deed was done.

He sighed a little, keeping his wing in position to move some air over Alec’s head, and was rewarded by his parabatai giving him a little smile before rearranging his position on the bed, laying on his stomach so that he could look at Jace from under his lashes.

“And the warlock will be there too,” Alec finally added after a time, voice heavy with sleep.

Jace could feel his concern through their bond and tried to smile reassuringly. An Italian warlock of some sort had agreed to take part in the ritual – for scholastic purposes, the lady had said, her interest picked by what they were attempting to do – and Magnus had vouched for her, despite his misgivings at the whole thing. Sometimes, Jace suspected the warlock had fallen a lot harder for his parabatai than anyone could have thought, given the short time they had known each other, but hey, who was he to blame the guy? He too had fallen for Alec – even if it had taken him years, and afterwards weeks to realize it.

Sighing, Jace finally left his spot against the wall and moved on the bed so that he was laying facing Alec, one wing replied on his back and the other still spread out, moving slightly so as to bring some air over them. He gently touched Alec’s face, marveling at how soft and relaxed his parabatai looked under his fingers, curling in the contact with abandon.

“I love you,” he whispered before kissing his parabatai softly, smiling a little as Alec was sighing against his mouth, contentment written all over his face.

“Love you too,” Alec mumbled between two kisses, enjoying the way Jace’s fingers were cupping his neck, softly stroking his skin.

Jace couldn’t help but wonder at the peacefulness of the moment. Oh, they had had plenty of occasions to kiss – and more – over the past few months, stealing hours from their duties and time with their loved ones, but it was a never-ending source of amazement to him. Maybe it was because of what was going to happen tomorrow, or maybe it was just the setting, but in any case, he felt happier than he had in a long time.

Alec sighed a little when they finally separated and Jace’s hand moved to his forehead, checking for signs of fever. The skin was a bit hotter than usual, but between the heat outside and the preparations for the ritual, it wasn’t very surprising. Jace remembered having spent a few days with a fever of his own, after all, but it hadn’t stopped him from training – and with only minor injuries at that.

“Lay back on your stomach,” he told Alec before moving away on the bed.

“I’m too tired to do anything,” his parabatai mumbled before obeying, not really complaining about his new position.

“You won’t have to _do_ anything, just lay back and enjoy,” Jace assured him, a little smile on his lips as he gently kissed Alec’s neck.

This was probably the last day he could have his fun with Alec’s unmarred back and to hell if he wasn’t going to take advantage of it. His fingers were a light touch on Alec’s shoulder blades, drawing the contours of the bones before moving to his spine, appreciating the way muscles were rolling under the skin, reacting to every single pressure. Jace felt heat pool at the bottom of his stomach but kept his focus, intent on making this a good moment for his parabatai.

The very light massage he had been giving Alec was nice, but it wasn’t what Jace had in mind when he had interrupted their kissing session. Moving around, he positioned himself so that Alec was between his legs, lying peacefully, before putting his weight on his forearms. Alec sighed softly when he felt a pair of lips on his neck, before moving down his spine, taking the same path than Jace’s fingers had. He felt himself melt on the bed, relaxing with every touch, smiling contentedly as he could feel his parabatai reverently kissing his back.

“You have a thing,” he mumbled after some time, as Jace was nearing to the hollow of his back, still intent on licking and kissing every inch of his skin.

“It’s going to be more difficult to do that in the next weeks,” Jace pointed gently, tempted to bite him a little.

His left hand moved towards Alec’s stomach, gently stroking him, before making its way down, until Alec whined softly. Jace stopped for a moment and smiled a little as Alec moved his legs to make more room for whatever it was he had in mind.

“Just relax and enjoy,” he whispered in Alec’s ear before getting down to business, careful not to put all his weight on his parabatai.

The position was a bit awkward, but Jace managed to do well enough, if his parabatai’s little sighs and moans were enough to go by. There was something very sweet in the way Alec was letting himself being manhandled, only moving a little to get more contact. Jace was only too glad to indulge him, biting and nibbling at Alec’s neck as his hand kept moving at a slow pace, intent on tiring him out in a good way. Potions and spells had taken their toll on him and it was nice to know that Alec would be tired for a _good_ reason, for once.

Jace finally reached his goal, not caring about the sticky mess on his hand, and laughed a little when Alec turned towards him, eager for a kiss that he was too glad to give. His parabatai seemed to be spent out by the little action and fell back on the bed, a little _humpf_ escaping his lips.

“You’re of cleaning duty now,” he mumbled before rearranging himself on the bed, ready to doze off once again.

Jace didn’t complain and obeyed easily enough, leaving the bed to go get a clean towel and some water from the attached bathroom. He took his sweet time to clean off his parabatai, hands roaming all over his stomach and his back, before sitting on the bed, back against the wall. He moved Alec gently so that his head – and pillow – were close to his thigh, before reassuming his position as a wind-bringer, his wing moving softly over Alec’s head. His parabatai finally fell back to sleep, completely relaxed and confidant in the knowledge that Jace was standing guard next to him. Jace went back to stroking his hair, unable to keep his worries out of his mind. The ritual had been so painful when Valentine had put him through it, and to think that his parabatai willingly wanted to do it… he was scared of the outcome.

He couldn’t bear to lose Alec.

ooOoo

It had been a close call.

They had awoken early in the morning, while it was night still, to get ready for the final ritual. Alec still looked slightly feverish, his cheeks a deep crimson on his otherwise pale face, but that hadn’t stopped him from taking the long walk through the forest of Broceliande until they had reached an old source known for its magical properties. They had made quite the assembly, between the French Shadowhunters, the Italian warlock and their own merry little band. Izzy had looked as nervous as Jace felt while Alec had immerged himself in the water, before the ritual had finally started.

The first rays of the sun had started hitting the water while the warlock had chanted ancient, powerful words, from a language that wasn’t spoken anymore. Jace had no idea how Valentine had even found the spell – and a warlock to cast it – but it had worked on him. It worked on Alec too, almost making him drown as his wings were piercing through his skin, the pain too much for him to stand upright. Steam started rising above the water, so thick it made it almost impossible to see what was standing in front of them. Jace started feeling pain in his parabatai rune and almost jumped in the water before the ritual was completed, worried out of his mind for his parabatai. Two French Shadowhunters hold him back until the warlock finished her chant, worry written on everyone’s face as Jace could feel the bond fiercely tugging at him.

The water of the source had turned red when they had finally gotten Alec out of it, passed out from the pain and the blood loss. The Shadowhunters had been hesitant to manipulate him, with the two huge appendices on his back, but Jace had taken matters into his hands, using his own wings to support Alec’s while they were bringing him back to the manor.

The Clave would be delighted to hear the ritual had worked, but Jace could still feel the parabatai bond tugging at his rune, and suspected it might not go as well as for another Shadowhunter, one without a parabatai. He was, after all, exhausted – as if someone was using his own strength to hold on, to stay in the realm of the livings…

And back into their bedroom they were, the linen sheets replace with ones made of cotton – more comfortable, and probably easier to clean up too, given the dark pus that was flowing from Alec’s back, coating his wings with a viscous fluid.

They watched over him for a couple of days, Jace too tired to do anything more than sitting close to him and holding his hand, wings replied high behind his back. Izzy, the three Silent Brothers that had joined them and the Italian warlock did most of the nursing duties, their hosts giving them all the space they needed.

There wasn’t much to be done other than waiting, trying to get Alec to drink some fortifying potions and redraw his iratzes on a regular basis.

Jace hated waiting – hated being stuck in such a powerless situation, knowing there was nothing he could do but share all of his strength with Alec, to keep his parabatai with him.

Alive.

It was almost a week later when Alec’s eyelids finally fluttered in the dim light of their room, one of the Silent Brothers dozing off on a chair next to the bed, while Jace was holding Alec’s hand in a tight grip, snoring off softly.

There was a dull pain throbbing all over his back and he couldn’t clearly remember how he had ended up here – there had been water, he remembered that, the purest water he had ever felt on his skin, and _pain_ , and _lots_ of blood – but he knew the ritual had worked. He could feel it; not just because of the heavy, warm weight on his back but he could sense something different about him, as if everything had become sharper around him.

The parabatai bond was thrumming gently, love and strength pouring onto him, and Alec closed his eyes for a moment, enjoying the feeling. Of course, they had become more attuned to one another since they had become involved, but _this_ – this was different. He felt attuned to Jace in a way he hadn’t since his parabatai had left with Valentine, all those months ago.

_Their bond had finally settled again._

Alec smiled a little at the idea, before moving his head against Jace’s thigh, wondering whether or not it was a good idea to try and get a look at the pair of wings on his back. It was a strange feeling, having the appendices spread out on the bed and above – if he focused a little, he could even feel the feathers and maybe… maybe try to move them? The gesture was extremely cautious, but something still moved in the wrong way and Alec hissed in pain, curling on himself. Jace woke up with a start, wings jerking, before looking at him with huge, nervous eyes, as if he couldn’t believe the sight in front of him.

Alec could understand the feeling – he often felt like he was looking at a real angel, ever since Jace had come back with his golden wings.

“You’re awake,” Jace whispered in a reverent tone, his hand that wasn’t holding Alec’s coming to gently pet his head, moving a few strands of hair in the same gesture. “How are you feeling?”

“Like I fell down the stairs repeatedly,” Alec admitted after a moment of consideration, cautious not to move too briskly. “Do you have some water around?”

He felt like he was dying of thirst, all of sudden, and was grateful when Jace carefully extricated himself from the bed to get a bottle of water than was standing on the nightstand and bringing it back to him.

“Don’t try to sit up right now,” Jace advised him, careful not to bump into his spread wing.

Alec still didn’t know which colour they were – and suspected he would have to wait until he could stand into broad daylight until he could figure it out.

It was a bit difficult to put all his weight on his left forearm and to use his right arm to drink, but he managed, in the end, before crashing back onto the bed with a whine, tiredness settling over him. Jace was smiling softly next to him, sitting on the edge of the bed and caressing his hair absently.

“I can’t believe this is real,” Jace finally said after a moment of silence, careful to keep his wings replied behind his back. “I wasn’t sure…”

His voice trailed off and Alec opened his eyes to look at him, feeling his parabatai’s anxiety radiating around him. He reached for Jace’s hand and squeezed gently, trying to reassure him of his presence by the contact.

A snore made them jump and they both looked at the Silent Brother, waiting to see if he would wake up, before focusing on one another once again.

“I hold onto our bond,” he told Jace in a low voice, as if it was a secret – and it was, somehow, at least until he was interrogated by the Clave to have the ins and outs of his perception of the ritual. “Jace, I couldn’t have done it if you hadn’t been around to ground me…”

The pain had been so great, he had almost lost himself in it. Alec shuddered at the memory before biting back a hiss of pain, Jace’s hand coming onto his shoulder blade to keep him on the bed.

“I know,” he assured him in a comforting voice. “It had been the same for me when Valentine had been experimenting…”

Jace got lost in his thoughts for a moment before focusing on Alec again. “Hey, do you think you can stomach eating something? It has been a week and you’re going to need all your strength to get used to your wings.”

Alec’s stomach grumbled at the idea of food and he bit back a laugh, the sound alleviating the atmosphere a little. Jace tip-toed off the room, promising to came back quickly before briefly kissing Alec, who lied down again on his pillow with a little contented sigh. His parabatai hadn’t seemed too put out by his appearance, which meant everything had gone accordingly to the plan – and he indeed couldn’t wait to start training with his new wings, alongside Jace.

_A pair of winged parabatai._

They sure would be quite the sight in the Institute, and on the battlefield too. Hopefully this would give them a new advantage in the war – and a way to put a definitive end to Valentine’s plans.

ooOoo

Training with wings was a pain in the ass. It reminded Alec of his growth spur, when he had spent _months_ hitting himself into every single piece of furniture in the Institute, Izzy and Jace snorting in the background (well, only at first, because it had lost most its funny appeal a couple of weeks in). His joints had been aching all day long, sometimes keeping him up at night, and training had been downright horrible at the beginning.

Jace had become _extremely_ sympathetic once their parabatai bond had been created, and was showing the same sympathy now, giving him massages every night and trying to share what he remembered of his first weeks with his wings.

That didn’t stop Alec from sending _a lot_ of items (more or less precious) and weapons on the ground on a regular basis since they had come back to the Institute. The span of his wings was _huge_ – _proportionate to your body, Alec, it’s normal_ , Izzy had assured him a with a roll of her eyes – and his feathers seemed to share the same characteristics as Jace’s: soft to the touch of those he trusted, but somehow sharp enough, at the right angle, that they could cut into wood and leather, if he put enough energy behind it.

And more than one Shadowhunter had cut themselves on his feathers since he had come back. Alec couldn’t explain to what it was due, and neither could Jace, who encountered the same issue: it seemed that only the pair could touch their wings without risking an injury. Oh, it frustrated all the scholars that had worked on the ritual, Izzy included, but Alec was secretly glad of it.

Touching his wings was a private matter and reserved to Jace.

“You’ll get used to them sooner than you think,” his parabatai assured him one night as they were sitting on the rooftop after a long day of training. “It’s just a matter of time.”

Alec huffed a little but didn’t answer. They had had this conversation a couple of times already, and he didn’t feel any closer to getting used to his wings. And as long as he wasn’t used to them, he couldn’t go back on the battlefield – which was an issue, given how aggressive Valentine’s forces currently were. Jace didn’t seem too bothered by this development, but Alec didn’t like knowing his parabatai was out there without having him at his back. After all, he didn’t trust anyone else to correctly look after Jace – and especially not the little girl, who seemed to think her rune-creating ability meant nothing _bad_ could happen on the field.

She was still so naïve, that one.

“You’ll see,” Jace repeated with a little smile, fondness clear in his eyes, before reaching for a snack in his bag.

They had started arranging a little space of their own on the rooftop, taking advantage of the summer weather: a bunch of pillows and blankets (bought in mundane stores, so as not to attract any undue attention at the Institute) had found their way here, and they usually brought food every time they came up.

Izzy had accused them – not unkindly, but with a strange light in her eyes – of making a nest on the rooftop, but Alec had snorted the ridiculous idea way.

“And honestly, I can’t wait for us to start flying together,” Jace added once he was done eating, before reaching for his bottle of water.

It wasn’t as hot as it had been in France – despite it being the middle of July now – but they were still better off drinking water as much as possible. The heat had already caused plenty of troubles to Shadowhunters – on both side – since the beginning of the summer.

“Neither can I,” Alec said with a little sight, wings hanging low on his back.

Of course, he had had to build muscles on his back to support their weight, but they were still heavy at the end of the day. It seemed that his incapacity at moving them the way he wanted to made them even heavier, if it was possible.

They were sitting close to one another, shoulders touching slightly, wings intertwined behind them, and Jace turned to look at him, a worried frown on his face.

“Hey,” he whispered before bumping into his shoulder slightly. “It’s going to be okay, alright? We have time. You’ll manage sooner than you think. Don’t put more pressure on you, okay?”

Jace gently touched his face, stroking his cheek, before coming in for a soft kiss. Alec felt his heart flutter at the gesture and smiled slightly under his parabatai lips, more touched than he let it shown, before kissing back.

They kept kissing for a long moment, Jace’s hand still stroking Alec’s cheek while Alec was holding onto his parabatai’s waist, gently caressing their rune. Their respective free hands were chastely positioned on the ground between them, as a mean to keep their equilibrium.

They finally separated after a time, slightly short of breath, tension disappearing slowly from Alec’s shoulders. It was true he had put himself under a great deal of pressure to get the hang of this whole living-with-wings thing, but Jace was right: it was useless to try and force things to happen. He would get the hang of his wings in due time and not before, simple as that.

Night was falling over New York when Alec gently pushed Jace on his back, marveling at the sight of his parabatai’s golden wings spread out on the blankets they had brought here for that purpose. Hunger was clearly visible on his face and Alec felt desire burning through his veins, before kissing him passionately.

“The door…” Jace mumbled between two kisses, his shirt long gone on the ground, fingers running through Alec’s hair.

“It’s locked up,” was the answer and Jace allowed himself to let his guard down and lose himself in the moment.

Alec’s shirt soon ended join his own on the ground and Jace couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow at the way his parabatai’s wings were twitching. The last rays of the sun were giving a deeper hue to their chocolate colour, and he couldn’t help but admire the sight. Alec might have had issues controlling his wings, but he was pretty sure his parabatai only needed to fully lose control to regain it – if that made sense.

Heat rose up on the rooftop as they kept kissing, hands roaming freely with abandon, until Alec stopped short, hovering over Jace with eyes darkened by desire.

“Stay here,” he whispered in a husky voice, kissing him on the lips one last time before moving to his jawline.

Jace felt a shiver going down his spine as Alec reverently kissed the scar on his cheekbone, before moving onto his jawline. Jace relaxed onto the blanket, feeling his wings settle, all spread out as they were, and watched as his parabatai was slowing making his way down his body. It wasn’t complicated to stay in position – it was, after all, very enjoyable to let himself being kissed on every inch of his body, all while keeping a hand on Alec’s hair – but the shivers sent down his spine did make him jump a little.

And his parabatai loved taking advantage of that, the little bastard – he knew how sensitive Jace was, especially when it came to his parabatai rune, and always made a point to spend a _long_ time kissing and licking it, when he was in one of his moods.

They hadn’t had much time to themselves since they had come back from France – not for anything more than stolen kisses or crashing together onto one of their beds, exhausted by training and, in Jace’s situation, fighting without having his parabatai to watch his back – so it was nice to just relax and enjoy the moment.

To lay back and watch as Alec was spending a long, reverent tie on the scar marring the left side of his torso, very close to his parabatai bond, felt more intense and intimate than Jace could have expected. He knew Alec had been badly shaken up by those long weeks they had spent separated, and this tension had come back since they couldn’t go on the battle field together, but it still made him oddly emotional every time Alec would spend time on his old wound.

Jace’s left wing suddenly twitched and he moved it so that it was touching Alec’s right wing, careful not to make him flinch at the contact. His wings were oddly sensitive – sometimes very welcoming to Jace’s touch, otherwise not too much – and he wondered if it had been the same for him in the early days (or, more exactly, if it would have been the same, had his parabatai been around during that time – by the time he had been brought back to the Institute, he had, after all, quite the control over them).

“Eager, are we?” Alec whispered, close to his hip, and Jace chuckled a little, moving his legs slightly so that his parabatai could have more access.

They were still half-clothed but Jace was eager to get rid of his pants and, looking at the way Alec’s wings were twitching every now and then, he wasn’t the only one. Yet it still came as a surprise when Alec’s hands finally grabbed his pants and pushed them down, Jace wriggling slightly to help them be pushed down his legs. Alec then rose up over him, his wings drawn high on his back, half covering them. The kiss was tender than Jace would have expected, given their current predicament, and he whined slightly at the loss of contact, before biting his lip as Alec moved back between his legs, a little smirk on his face.

A loud moan echoed on the rooftop but neither of them cared, too lost in the pleasure of the moment.

ooOoo

Izzy took a look at the two forms twirling in the airs, drawing circles over the battlefield. The fight had been hard and bloody, with losses on both sides, but they had gotten the upper hand in the end – as usual lately, since her brother had come back on the battlefield in full control of his new _abilities_.

Sometimes, she felt that having gotten wings had changed Alec’s personality, to some extent. Or perhaps it was all because of the war, of the stress and pressure they were under, but her big brother had become harsher somehow, with a disregard for the Clave’s laws that hadn’t gone unnoticed by those who knew him. No one had said anything about it – not when the Clave needed all the fighters it could get, and a pair of winged parabatai was too good an advantage to ignore – but she was starting to fear what would happen, once the war was over.

Because it would end, she knew it, and rather sooner than later. Valentine had meddled with forces far too powerful for him and the Clave now knew how to turn its best fighters into something ever better. There had been attempts, in the weeks after Alec had gone through the ritual, to have regular Shadowhunters going through it, but it hadn’t worked out well for them. Their bodies had rejected the potions, the spells, and none had had the strength to go through everything that was required.

It wasn’t safe to go through that ritual, except for Shadowhunters who had entered a parabatai bound.

Izzy was glad she hadn’t done it – even though she felt a pang of envy, watching Alec and Jace soaring high in the skies, free to leave the Institute at a moment’s notice now, with none the wiser to try and stop them. They seemed a bit detached from the rest of their world now – perhaps it was the war, perhaps it was because of those weeks they had spent separated, with Jace in Valentine’s clutches – and she wondered if it was due to the ritual, and the wings it had brought them, or to the fact they had taken their bond to a new level.

Not that they knew she knew, of course.

She kept an eye on them as the Clave’s forces were unceremoniously rounding up their prisoners, holding tight onto her whip, until they decided to come back to the ground. Jace landed with grace next to Clary, cheeks flushed with excitement, the thrill of the battle obviously not gone from him, while her brother landed more stoutly next to her, dust whirling around him.

“It’s a good catch,” Alec said with satisfaction, putting an arrow back into his quiver. “This is going to be a huge blow for Valentine.”

Izzy hummed quietly, looking at him from the corner of her eye. Some of the feathers of his wings were a bit tousled by his landing, but he looked good otherwise, the chocolate hue of his wings standing out against the green leaves of the forest. He and Jace made quite the picture when they were flying together, dark brown and golden wings sharp against the blue of the sky, and she often found her thoughts wandering to the Angel, every time she saw them flying like that.

Perhaps this was what Nephilims were _supposed_ to be, she had pondered over during many nights. Perhaps Shadowhunters were supposed to have wings, and only Valentine had found a way to make it happen – if only through parabatai pairs, at first.

“The Clave will be satisfied,” she finally said after a moment, still watching as Shadowhunters were slowly leaving the battlefield.

Alec turned to look at her, a frown on his face.

“Is everything alright?” he asked in a worried tone, concern visible in his eyes.

_Ever the big brother – some things never changed..._

She looked at him and smiled, finally putting her whip around her wrist.

“It’s fine,” she assured in a confident voice, before hesitating for a moment. “I was just thinking… you and Jace have been different, since he came back. That’s all.”

Alec looked at her in silence for a moment, wings tense in his back, before finally relaxing.

“We’re alright,” he finally said after a moment of silence. “Just closer than before, I suppose.”

“Well then, be careful not to cut yourselves too much from the rest of us,” she suggested him, finally letting her concerns out. “I don’t want the Clave to try and get rid of you once the war is over because they get some _ideas_ about the two of you.”

“We’ll be careful,” Alec promised before squeezing her hand gently, warmth clearly visible in his eyes.

Despite his confidence, her worries stayed at the back of his mind when they came back at the Institute and dealt with everything required post-mission – especially when Valentine’s forces were concerned. Having taken prisoners was a good thing, a new source of intel for the Clave, but for once he passed on the occasion to interrogate them, preferring instead to retreat to his room, mulling over what Izzy had said.

They were fine, it was true, but that didn’t change the fact that their bond had become more intense over the past months. They were so attuned to one another, it was true they hadn’t cared much about what fellow Shadowhunters could think of it. And maybe they hadn’t been cautious enough, hadn’t taken enough precautious to hide the shift that had occurrent between them… The thoughts kept turning around in his mind, throwing him off.

He was barely out of a shower, a pair of pants around the hips and searching for a shirt to put on when a knock on the door caught his attention. Jace walked into his room, hair still damp from his shower and wearing a pair of clean, comfortable pants, something akin to worry in his eyes.

“I set everything up,” he mumbled in a tone that was far from assured. “Are you coming…?”

Alec hesitated for a moment, still troubled by Izzy’s warning, but swiftly forgot all his inhibitions when he noticed the bad shape of Jace’s wings.

“Sure. Just let me find a shirt…”

It was easier to make a choice now that he could feel Jace’s eyes on his back, his own wings twisting nervously. They both quickly left his room, wings brushing together in the corridors, a bit amazed at the lack of Shadowhunters around. It was the perfect timing for an escape to the rooftop without being bothered, and Alec was careful enough to lock the door behind it once they finally came out on top, enjoying the warm breeze on his skin.

“Izzy said we’ve been a bit distant from everyone for some time now,” he finally explained as they were sitting down on the blankets, noticing the tension around Jace’s eyes. “I wasn’t sure…”

 “We knew what we were getting ourselves into, when we started,” Jace pointed out, wings drawn high on his back in a defensive, instinctive gesture.

Alec raised his hands to placate him, feeling sorry he had reacted that way without talking about it with his parabatai first. Their bond might have changed but they still couldn’t read it each other’s thoughts, and maybe it could have avoided them this discussion.

“I kind of panicked,” he admitted in a low voice, wings twitching nervously, and he could feel Jace’s anger and hurt abate at his admission.

They both knew he tended to react badly when he felt cornered.

“The Clave won’t do anything to us until the war is over,” Jace reminded him in a calmer tone, finally settling comfortably on the ground. “And after that, well… we’ll see.”

They weren’t even sure they would still be alive by that time. Oh, of course they both wished for, intensely, but that didn’t change the truth about war: death was always around the corner.

Feeling a bit guilty, Alec took Jace’s face between his hands and kissed him softly, trying to pour all of his love in the gesture. Jace tilted his head onto a side, deepening the kiss, and they soon enough found themselves short of breath, panting slightly as they had to break the kiss. They both felt comforted by the contact, their bond thrumming gently between them, and Alec moved his hand to Jace’s face, pulling away a few strands of hair.

“I need to get a look at your wings,” he finally whispered, unable to keep his hands away from his parabatai.

“Do so, please,” Jace answered in the same tone, before taking a look at Alec’s wings. “And then I’ll do yours.”

He couldn’t help but brush some of the feathers that were closest to him, marveling at their softness and at the richness of their color. From afar they seemed to be of a unified deep brown, akin to chocolate, but up close, there seemed to be iridescent reflects on them, making them shine under the sunlight.

There was something about _grooming_ each other’s wings that was nearly indescribable, Alec mused once he got a lap full of Jace, marveling at the softness of the feathers under his fingers. The act was more intimate than a great many things they did together, and it always brought him a sense of peacefulness he had a hard time finding elsewhere. Maybe it was because they were in their little bubble every time they did that, focused on giving comfort and pleasure to the other, attentive to every twitch and move of their wings. They didn’t usually keep track of the time, and had gotten surprised by the length of their session more than once.

Maybe it was because it was just the two of them, taking the time to take care of one another, checking for wounds at the same time and using this opportunity to give a massage, should the need arise.

Or maybe it was because they could feel the love pouring through their bond, reassuring them they were at the right place with the right person.

“You’re thinking too much,” Jace whispered in his ear as they were exchanging positions some time later, an intense feeling contentment washing out over him.

He ran his fingers through the dark feathers closest to him, amazed, as always, by their softness, even after a long afternoon spent flying and fighting.

“I can feel it from here…”

Alec smiled a little, turning his head to get a kiss that was granted easily enough.

“I’m just lucky to have found you, parabatai,” he whispered before kissing Jace again, swallowing his surprised gasp between his lips, cheeks flushing a little.

Jace kissed him back passionately, feeling his heart thundering furiously between his ribs. Alec wasn’t one to share that kind of emotional thoughts, and he always felt himself weaken when that happened, counting his lucky stars to have been blessed with the opportunity of meeting his parabatai.

“I should be the one saying that,” he said when they finally broke the kiss, panting hard.

Arousal was starting to pool, but Jace wanted to take care of his parabatai before anything could happen – twisted feathers tended to hurt like hell, when not taken care of – and stopped himself from reacting more, only giving a slight peck to Alec’s lips before getting back to work.

Night was starting to fall when Jace finally considered himself satisfied with their grooming session, enjoying the relaxed look that had taken place on his parabatai’s face over time. This was, without a doubt, something that never failed to turn Alec into jelly under his hands, and he was perfectly aware he reacted in the same way.

Hell, the first time he had gotten a _full_ grooming session from Alec? He had gotten an orgasm out of it without having anything other than his wings being touched.

He moved away to get his stele, wondering whether or not it was a good idea to activate the rune allowing them to have their wings hidden within their bodies – he wasn’t too sure of the anatomical logics of it all, but it was really useful – when he heard a little _thump_. He turned around, raising an eyebrow as he took in the view of his parabatai was laying on the floor, wings spread out on each side of him, obviously not interested in moving any time soon.

“Come back here,” Alec mumbled, moving his right wing in an alluring gesture, one hand behind his head and the other on his stomach, his fingers unconsciously stroking his parabatai rune.

“Your wish is my command,” Jace answered with a laugh, all thoughts of hiding their wings gone from his mind.

He laid next to Alec, cupping his face and stroking his cheek before kissing him softly, enjoying the contact more than one could imagine.

Fresh breeze was rising around them as they kept lazily kissing, the excitement of the battle fully gone from them after their grooming session. The slow, languid rhythm was doing wonders for Jace’s mood, until he decided to spice up things a little and moved so as to position himself over Alec, who looked at him with utter fondness in his eyes.

“Make yourself comfortable, why don’t you?” he taunted him with a smile, hands moving alongside Jace’s ribs until they reached his ass and squeezed, none too gently.

“I thought you would never ask,” Jace huffed with a laugh before kissing Alec once again, desire running through his veins.

Their wings were moving slightly around them, twitching and spreading in par with their emotions, and neither of them was above using them to bring the other over the edge. After all, given the sensibility of their feathers, wouldn’t it be a waste not to use them to reach the stars?

**Author's Note:**

> Feedback is always welcome and appreciated :)


End file.
